kingkong5

Today I took my 97 LS400 in for service. I recently moved to the area, and found a Lexus "specialist" repair center nearby. I asked them to do the following

Tune-up (incl. change oil and replace all 8 spark plugs) - $225
Flush/repl. Transmission Fluid/filter - $95
Drain/replace Differential fluid - $45
Replace all 4 sets of brake pads - $380

All prices include labor. Not having ever really had to get the car serviced before, are these prices fairly reasonable? I have no idea how to take care of the car myself, so I guess I'd have to pay whatever they charged. What would a similar estimate be if I took it straight to the dealer?

btw, they are also rotating and balancing the tires for free, since they have to take them off to do the brakes.

Woogie

including labor? yeah i'd say that's pretty dang decent. i spent 2500 hundreds for tune up, spark plugs, t stat, water pump, replace all belts, upper and lower radiator hoses, and throttle body treatment.

kingkong5

yowza! $2500 is some serious bucks. By all belts do you mean the timing belt too? I hear that one can be pretty expensive. Thanks for the reassurance on the prices, I feel a lot better now.

toy4two

eeek $380 to change brake pads. Its so cheap and easy to do yourself, it will cost you $80 for pads and 1 hour of your time.

Tranny fluid will cost you $20 and is also easy to do yourself.

Differential fluid, I won't do it, too messy, so $45 sounds good to me.

Tune up is easy and would cost you $15 for cap and rotor, $50 for plug wires, and $20 for spark plugs, BUT it depends on the car, the RX300 is supposedly a pain to change yourself, most cars though it will take 1 hour and very easy.

RTIS250

iTrader: (9)

RX's are harder to do plugs on cause the rear bank is under the cowl. But the iridium plugs are 100k plugs, we usually change them at the 60k though, since the intake is already off. ES's are almost as bad, but a few swivel extensions and you can get the back bank. Caps and rotors on an LS is a bit more than an hour job.. it involves removing the front tbelt covers and such, so its a little more labor.

HarrierAWD

to: kingkong5

That's the kind of price you can expect at Lexus dealers, so you might as well take it to the dealer. You can get a loaner car and enjoy the cozy lounge, big screen TV, and Shiatsu massage. (Kidding about the massage.)

to: toy4two

I haven't seen a car with cap and rotor for two decades.

$20 for 8 spark plugs? Not for Denso or NGK Iridium. And You don't always have to replace the spark plug wires. If there's no corrosion, keep them.

Replacing tranny fluid isn't that easy, nor is replacing brake pads for the backyard mechanics.

Replacing differential fluid isn't more messy compared to oil or tranny fluid change. Agree with you that I wouldn't do it myself.

ripe911

Try to check prices at a Toyota service center. They have all the parts. I take my GS to a Toyota service center near me and they have good prices and great service. I don't get the leather sofa's but who cares? A wait is a wait. Plus, all the other customers with their Camrys look at you like your special. Give it a shot.

RTIS250

iTrader: (9)

hehe... all the non-VVTi LS400's have caps and rotors.. so do the older GS300's and ES300's.....

id agree that 20 bucks is cheap for 8 plugs... i beleive the oem iridium plugs are like 7-8 bucks each... but are supposed last 100k miles...

BrickHead

I had my 90000 mile service done at Lexus for around $900. It included changing the timing belt, flushing all fluids, not sure about the spark plugs, and no break job done. You might want to check with more than one Lexus dealer to see the price differences.

Lexusfreak

Prices don't seem too bad all things considered.

JPI Racing

These prices ain't bad at all. Consider the platinum plugs run $10 each . That is what we charge around here.
JPI